


Protecting My Omega

by Mamabug1981



Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: Alpha Rich, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Claiming Bites, Courtship, Formal Courtship, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Mutual Pining, Omega Rob, Past Rape/Non-con, Past Sexual Assault, Very minor blood consumption related to claim bites
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-12
Updated: 2019-09-06
Packaged: 2019-10-09 02:04:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,333
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17397971
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mamabug1981/pseuds/Mamabug1981
Summary: When Rob forgets to pack his suppressants for a con, Rich finds himself not only fighting his instincts to take him as his mate, but protecting him from the advances of other unwanted Alphas, to his own detriment.





	1. 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first attempt at writing an A/B/O universe. The first two chapters are a lot of world building, but I promise it picks up from there. I will post the three chapters I have during the afternoon today. Let me know what you think so far!

Rob tore through his bags again, belongings strewn across the room. Nononono he thought. Of all the weekends to forget, OF COURSE it had to be a convention weekend! It wasn’t the Alphas on the cast he was concerned about; while none of them knew of his Omega status thanks to the blockers, all but two were happily mated, and none of them would ever tolerate anybody laying an unwanted finger on an Omega, especially one of their own.

No, it was any Alphas potentially attending the convention. It was illegal to harm an Omega in any way. They were semi-rare, and the only ones whose pups could be Alpha or Omega. Betas could breed, but only more Betas or humans, depending on their partner. But to harm an Omega, especially for exercising their right to refuse an Alpha’s advances, would earn the offender a life sentence, potentially even death.

But there was always that one bad seed, that one Alpha who felt entitled to any Omega in their line of sight. Rob learned that the hard way several years ago. The attack was so brutal that the only thing that saved the Alpha from the death penalty was an overpriced lawyer and the fact that Rob wasn’t with pup. He was immediately put on the strongest blockers available once he recovered.

He shook his head to clear the memory. No. The only thing to do was to pack his bags back up, make an excuse to the convention team, and get home before the blockers wore off. He had just grabbed the first couple of shirts off the ground when a knock sounded at the door.

The moment he opened the door to let Brianna in, he knew it was too late. He couldn’t risk going anywhere. He shouldn’t have been able to smell her, but already he could detect the hints of sunshine, what could only be described as sass, and fresh Canadian snowfall that defined the Beta as she entered the room.

“Rob, come on! Why aren’t you ready? You’re going to miss dinner!” She trailed off as Rob shut the door and slumped down against it til he was sitting on the floor. “Are you ok?”

She crossed the room to him. He could see the moment the issue registered with her. Bri hesitated, brow furled as she scented the air around him. Her eyes widened as she looked at him. “Robbie. Did you forget to apply your blockers?”

Brianna had found him out a couple of days after the attack. Rob missed a planned lunch out, and when he didn’t answer his phone, she went to his house to check on him. When he didn’t answer the door, she hunted down the spare key and let herself in, only to gag on the cloying, acrid reek of Omega in distress that permeated the house.

Rob nodded. “I left so fast this morning, I not only forgot to apply it, I forgot to pack it.”

“We can’t put you on stage tomorrow unblocked! You’re too close to your heat, and unmated. You’ll draw in every Alpha within a mile radius!”

“I know, I know.”

“Hey, come here.” She reached a hand down and pulled him up into a hug. Rob buried his face into her neck. Bri always emitted an extra pop of wildflower scent when she turned maternal on him, and he took a deep breath of the comforting scent. “Why don’t I make your excuses to the others, and you order room service instead. I’ll call a couple of folks I know, and we’ll see what we can figure out, yeah?”

She sat him down at the table with the hotel room service menu and made sure he was settled enough to order and eat something before she headed out the door.

 

Brianna walked up to the group gathered in the lobby, and was greeted with hugs all around.

“There she is!” She turned around to be grabbed up and swung around by Rich. He finally set her down and gathered her in for a hug, planting a kiss on her cheek. “You’re late.

“Yeah, well…”

“No, wait, let me guess.” He leaned in close and scented the air around her. “Mmm, lemongrass, sandalwood, coffee… Why, Bri! Did you find yourself some cute little Omega to play with? Damn, they smell good. And vaguely familiar…”

“Fuck you, Alpha!” She laughed and slapped his arm. “You know damned well I’m happily mated! I’m perfectly happy leaving the poor Omegas to you brutes.”

“Hehe, I know.” He pressed another kiss to her forehead and let her go. “Hey, where’s Robbie? I thought you went to get him for dinner?”

“Oh, um, yeah, well…” Bri hesitated. “He, umm, he texted me when I was halfway there, said he wasn’t feeling good and was going to just order in, then crash.”

Rich frowned. He knew Brianna well enough to know when she was lying. Not to mention… He couldn’t quite place the Omega scent, and he didn’t know why that scent being all over the Beta in front of him made his hackles rise just a bit. But he did recognize the fading scent of the cologne Rob insisted on constantly wearing, no matter the hour.

Before he could call her on it, she backed away. “Anyways, I have to beg off, myself. Old friend to see, y’know. I’ll see you guys at breakfast, yeah? Bye!!” With that, she all but ran out the door.

Something wasn’t right, and it involved his Robbie. His? Rich shook his head to rid himself of the ridiculous thought, and turned to the rest of the group.

“Hey guys, go on ahead, I’ll catch up. I forgot something in my room.” He watched them head for the car, then made his way to the nearest elevator bank.

As he stepped out on his floor, he stopped. The hallway smelled of the same Omega he’d scented on Brianna. The scent got stronger as he walked towards the room he shared with Rob. He stopped in front of the door to dig out his key card. Whoever the Omega was, they had definitely been here. And so had Bri.

He growled. There was a reason he was still unmated in his forties. He’d never had much interest in Betas, and while he’d considered an Omega or two that crossed his path in recent years, he’d decided that unless they were HIS Omega, he wanted nothing to do with claiming one.

But this one. Oh, this one. Interlaced with the lemongrass and sandalwood and coffee were scents of PROTECT and MINE. But, why here?

He opened the door. The scent filled the room. Letting the door fall closed behind him, he turned to Rob sitting at the table, picking at the plate in front of him.

“Hey Robbie, what’s up? Bri said you weren’t feeling well.”

Rob nodded without looking up. “Yeah, just really tired. Probably jetlag.”

He took a deep breath to sigh, and paused. Rich watched in fascination as Rob’s head snapped up to scent the air again. He suddenly smelled honey and whiskey, something he couldn’t quite place, and…

“Alpha!”

Rich’s eyes widened. “You! You’re the Omega!” He started to cross the room, but stopped short at Rob’s reaction.

Rob bailed out of his chair and cowered, his back pressed to the wall. He turned his head to the side and exposed his throat in submission.

“No! Alpha, please!”

Rich took a step back, bringing his hands up. Ok, he’d never had an Omega react to him quite like that before. He did his best to keep his scent as calming as possible.

“Whoa there, Omega. Robbie. It’s just me. You know me. I don’t know what’s happened to you before, but you know I would never hurt you.” His reassurances and scent finally cut through Rob’s panic, and he calmed enough to look at Rich. Rob tested the air again. The scent of honey and whiskey and ALPHA were still there. Intertwined beneath them though were the scents of SAFE and HOME. He pushed off the wall and launched himself at Rich.

“Oomph!” Rich took a step back to avoid being knocked over by the armful of trembling Omega he suddenly found himself with. “Hey now. Hey.”

He started to lead Rob to the bed. “C’mon, let’s get comfortable.” Rob tensed, and Rich nuzzled his neck. “No, Omega, nothing like that. I just want to take care of you, ok?”

Rob nodded, and let himself be laid down on the bed with Rich curled up tightly against his back. He hummed contentedly at the feel of Rich’s fingers carding through his hair.

“Better?” Rich asked, getting another nod from Rob. Now. Why did you react to me like that? You already knew I was an Alpha, and you know damned well I would never hurt you. But, how did we never know you were an Omega? We all had you pegged as a Beta, maybe even human.”

“Bri knew.”

Rich lifted his head in surprise. “Really?”

“Yeah.”

“I think you’d better start from the beginning.”

Rich listened as Rob told him about the attack, and Brianna finding him a couple of days later and getting him to the doctor, taking care of him as he recovered.

“There are super strong blockers, they’re largely reserved though for Omegas like me that have already been assaulted. They’re intended to prevent the offending Alpha from finding their victim by scent should they break out of custody, or if they were never caught in the first place. Kind of a scent-based witness protection, if you will.”

“The cologne you’re always wearing.”

Rob nodded. “And yeah, I knew you were an Alpha, but only because you told me once. All of you except Bri, I met AFTER I started the blockers. None of you could smell me, and I never volunteered the information. But it is so strong, it dulls my senses too. So, like, I can smell what makes a person THEM…”

“What do I smell like?”

Rob chuckled. “Honey and whiskey, and…” He rolled over in Rich’s arms to bury his nose in his chest, taking a deep breath. “And now that it’s worn off and I can smell you properly, fresh cut grass.”

He pulled away just far enough to roll onto his side and lay his head on the pillow facing Rich. “Anyways. So someone like Bri, that I knew before, I can occasionally pick out the scent that tells me she’s Beta, because I know her well enough to know which scent it is.”

“It’s the wildflower one.”

“Yep. But because of the blockers, I can’t hardly detect it anymore. The rest of you, that I met after, I can’t pick that marker out. I’ve gotten good at guessing though, based on personality and other factors.”

“Ok. So what’s your best guesses amongst the cast?”

“Well, I already knew Bri. You told me you were Alpha. Kim I think is human. She has no pack scent like we do. Matt on the other hand, blatantly Omega.”

Rich grinned. “And how did you come to that conclusion?”

“Well, the way he defers to you, for one. But the massive claim bite on the back of his neck was the main clue.”

“Hah! Yeah, Mandy really went to town when she claimed him, that’s for sure. She had to stick pretty close to him when he had to leave the house for cons and such for the first few weeks. Even so much as his shirt collar brushed that bite, he’d present and beg to be fucked. Man could that boy stink up a green room! Mandy stayed close to make sure he didn’t have issues with any other Alphas. The others were fine, all mated. I’m not. I spent a lot of time being anywhere but in his vicinity, so her instincts didn’t see me as challenging her claim. Boy was I glad when that bite healed and both their scents and instincts mellowed out.”

“I’ll bet. Jensen, Jared, and Misha confuse me, though. They’re all Alphas, right?” Rich nodded. “Misha smells like sawdust and outside, but it’s, I don’t know, muted to a point? Mostly he smells of his family. But Jensen and Jared, if I didn’t know them like I do, I would almost swear they were human. Literally the ONLY thing either of them smells like is their mates and pups. Whereas you, your scent is just as strong as I suspect mine is now.”

“Wait til you catch a whiff of them now you can smell properly. The Alpha is strong with those guys.”

Rich considered the Omega across from him. “You didn’t spend a lot of time around Alphas before your blockers, did you?”

Rob shook his head. “My father was the Alpha in my parents’ mating, and he died before I was born. Mom kind of avoided Alphas after that, she just had no interest in mating again. Between blockers, her claim bite mark, and us pups, we were largely left alone.”

“And later?”

He shrugged. “I really had no opportunity to develop an interest in Alphas. I was only days past reaching full maturity, I hadn’t even had a chance to start taking a heat suppressant yet. Then the attack happened, and I went on the blockers right after.”

“Ok. Right. Where to start?” Rich thought for a moment. “This is stuff your dad should have taught you, and I have never had to explain it before, so bear with me. Actually, I’m probably a good place to start, since I’m not mated. Ok, so, the primary purpose of an Alpha’s scent is to attract an Omega mate, and to a point, communication with the rest of the world. With me so far?” Rob nodded.

“Right. So, in an Omega, their primary biological imperative is procreation. “Whoa there, Robbie,” he said, seeing Rob’s scowl. “I said biological, not societal. Unlike an Alpha though, the Omega scents that communicate your Omega status and the ones that scream your ‘need’ to mate are completely separate. The first is always present, the second largely only occurs during heat. Ok?”

“Yeah. The doctor explained that my blockers also had a heat suppressant. No reason to break your cover by having a heat if you’re trying to hide your Omega status entirely.”

Rich raised up onto one elbow. “So, wait a minute. You said the attack happened when…” His eyes widened. “You’ve never had a proper heat, have you?”

Rob shook his head, sitting up and facing Rich. “No. Well, one. I was on the very edge of starting my first when the attack happened. SO not fun trying to recover from that AND deal with my first heat, by the way.”

Now that Rob seemed to be comfortable around him, Rich pulled himself up to sit up against the headboard. “I can’t even imagine. Anyways, moving on. In an unmated Alpha, like me, those scents are pretty intertwined, and constant. We can dampen them, like I’m doing with you right now, in order to come across as less of a threat when needed. But they’re still there.

“Jensen and Jared both mated Omegas. The majority of their scent is no longer needed, so it goes into kind of a… I guess hibernation is the best work I can think of. They still carry that intrinsic ALPHA scent, but largely they smell of their Omega mates. Basically a societal tag labeling them as off the market and no longer a threat to other Alphas and their claims.”

“That’s why Mandy tolerated having them around when her claim on Matt was fresh, and you were chased off. What about Misha though?”

“Correct. Misha… Misha’s an unusual case. He mated a Beta. It happens on occasion, an Alpha mating a Beta, but not often. It’s not particularly surprising in his case though. They’ve been in love since they were pups not yet to maturity. It only made sense that they’d take each other as mate as soon as they were able. But in so much as his mating instinct is satisfied, his biology isn’t, not as much anyways. It’s enough to reduce his scent, but not entirely. There was a lot of submissive posturing and keeping his mate around on Misha’s part back then.”

Rob still looked puzzled. “So, how does that relate to Omegas?”

Rich scrunched his eyes closed and dropped his head back, looking uncomfortable. “Not raised by an Alpha, right. Ok. Your mother will have taught you this part, but let’s review. So, you probably know that as recently as 20, 25 years ago, Omegas were pretty much bottom of the food chain, considered by some as nothing more than property. Thankfully, society has largely evolved to the point where today, even in most of the older matings, Omegas are respected as equals in their own right. It’s a lot of why most Omegas these days opt for simple heat suppressants rather than full scent blockers. Except for situations like yours, there’s just no reason anymore. And even the suppressants are more a convenience thing than anything else.”

“So why…”

“Why do attacks still happen, when most decent Alphas would simply walk right on by unless you actively showed interest? Unfortunately, there’s still a few uncultured assholes out there who believe the old ways were better. It’s why there are so many laws offering Omegas so much protection.”

He saw the comprehension finally cross Rob’s face, and moved to break the awkward tension. “Right, biology lesson over. Now we need to figure out what to do with you. Dude, you picked the absolute worst point in your heat cycle to forget your blockers, cause man, you reek! Never mind the nerves and fear from earlier, I’d guess you’re going to go into heat by…” He leaned forward, putting his weight on his hands in front of him to scent the air around Rob. He watch again in fascination as Rob instinctually bared his throat to him again, though much more calmly this time.

Rich caught himself licking his lips. He suddenly realized why he had reacted so strongly to Rob’s scent from the start.

He wanted the Omega in front of him, badly. This was THE Omega, HIS Omega, meant for him alone. But as badly as he wanted him, he wasn’t about to take advantage of Rob, not in his current condition. He sat back and cleared his throat.

“Anyways, as I was saying. My guess is late tomorrow, early Saturday at the lastest. Though, judging from your posturing…” Rob looked down and blushed, “…my money’s on tomorrow.”

“So what are we going to do?”

“I don’t know yet, man. But first…” A knock sounded at the door, then the sound of a key card being used. “That’s probably Bri. Anywho, first thing you are going to do is go shower off that stench.” He looked up as Brianna walked into the room carrying a small paper bag. “Hey Bri.”

“Hey guys.” Her gaze flicked between the two, assessing the situation. “Everything good here?”

“Yeah. Turns out our little Omega over here was raised sans Alpha. So we were… chatting.”

“Oh?” She finally registered the scent of Rich’s discomfort, and burst out laughing. “Oh! Well, bet you never thought you’d be having THAT conversation until you had pups of your own, huh?”

“Something like that.”

She took in how he was looking at Rob. Oh, ok. “Hey Rich. Rich, hey, over here.” She snapped her fingers in the air until he turned his attention to her. “Rich, why don’t you go crash in my room tonight. This room is saturated with your scent at this point, and probably the safest place we can be. I’ll get him taken care of best I can for now. Go get some rest.”

“Yeah, good idea. No offense, Robbie. Love you and all. But in this small of a space, both of us unmated… yeah. I’ll see you in the morning.” He headed for the door, stopping only to grab a change of clothes.

Bri stopped him just before he left, pulling him around to face her, and spoke quietly. “I saw how you were looking at him, and with all the two of you have been through together, I’m far from surprised. But I swear, he’s safe for tonight. You’ll just be down the hall if we need you, ok?”

He looked over her shoulder to where Rob was sitting on the couch now, fiddling mindlessly with his guitar, then back to her. “Yeah, ok. Hey, if he needs it, my jacket is in my bag. He’s accepted me as safe for now, there should be enough scent on that to help comfort him.”

Bri smiled softly at him. “Yeah, Alpha, ok. Now go. And grab a shower for yourself too. Rob’s not the only one that stinks.” She watched as Rich opened the door and started towards Bri’s room. She poked her head out the door and called down to him. “And clean up after yourself, you dirty horndog!”

She laughed out loud as he growled over his shoulder at her. “Fucking Beta menace!” and continued down the hall.


	2. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More world building. 
> 
> Discussion of past assault/rape.

Rich knocked on the door the next morning, waiting to be invited before letting himself in.

Thankfully, Bri had thought to air out the room while Rob showered. Between those and whatever stop gap Bri brought in, enough of the edge of Rob’s scent was blunted that Rich could at least think clearly.

“Ok, so where we at?”

Brianna sighed. “I was able to get a hold of some suppressants. But he’s already going into heat, and what I got are really only meant for female Omegas, not male ones. So I don’t know how effective they’ll be for fending off Alpha advances. But it should at least be enough to keep him basically functional for the weekend.”

“Crap, I was afraid of that. Ok, plan B it is.” He turned to Rob. “Rob, I’d like to extend an offer of courtship. But,” he looked back at Brianna, “For this to work the best, we’re going to have to go old school formal with this.”

“Wait, what? Why?”

“Rich, no!”

He addressed Bri first. “Think about it! You know damned well this is our only option! And you know why I have to do it this way.”

She considered a moment, then nodded. “You had better be absolutely sure about this.”

“I am, I promise. I was up half the night thinking about it.”

“Would somebody please tell me what the hell is going on here?”

Rich turned to him. “Robbie, I swear we’ll explain in a minute. But I need to follow protocol at this point. Let me finish here first.”

He turned back to Bri. “Who all is here right now?”

“Um, Kim. But she’s human, so that won’t work. It has to be pack. That leaves Matt, Misha, and the band.”

“Rob, I assume the band knows?”

He looked up at Rich. “Yeah, they’ve known me for years, even before the attack.”

“Right. Beta, Beta, Alpha… Shit, Stephen’s not mated though. Matt and Misha it is.”

“They should be down in the greenroom by now. I’ll go get them.”

“No.” Rich’s command stopped Bri in her tracks. “Formal protocol from here on out, remember? I’ll get them. You stay here with him, chaperone and such. Explain things to him while I’m gone, please?” With that, he left.

“For the love of… what the fuck is going on?”

Brianna glared at the door, then crossed the room to sit on the bed facing Rob.

“From biology lesson to history lesson. Right. Back in the day, before Omega rights were a thing, Omegas were generally mated off in one of two ways. By and large, an Alpha would simply see one they liked, go ‘That one’s mine,’ and that was that.

“In the upper classes though, Alphas actually gave a shit about their reputations, and those of the Omegas in their care. If an Alpha wished to have a particular Omega, it was a two part process. The first part is the part we’re concerned with, but the second literally never happens anymore anyways, not since Omegas gained equal status in society and the class system mostly died out.”

“Still lost.”

“Ok. The basic idea was that the Alpha had to petition the Omega’s guardian for permission to court them, with the end goal of mating them. The Omega still had no right to say no outright, but was allowed to try to make a case for refusal. With me yet?”

Rob still looked confused. “Eh, sort of?”

“Oi, ok. To cut things short, the practice is only rarely used anymore, and in a very modified form when it is. At this point, it’s really only used by the ultra rich, and in certain special circumstances.”

“And this is a special circumstance?”

Bri shook her head. “No honey, YOU are the special circumstance.”

“Me?”

“I know you’ve kinda gotten a crash course in Alpha/Omega dynamics this weekend, but bear with me just a little longer.”

Rob nodded uncertainly.

“Mainstream society today, Alphas and Omegas date and break up all the time, no big deal. They’re free to do so.”

“But not me and Rich? Why would he even want to do something like this?”

“Technically you can. But given the current situation combined with your past, doing things this way protects both of you to the largest extent possible, especially considering this is meant to be temporary.”

“Translation?”

“If the two of you were to date, it would give zero protection if another Alpha decided to push their luck. By formally asking for and declaring a courtship with you, it places you fully and legally under his protection as an Alpha, without the need for a full mating claim. Nobody can claim ignorance. Your scent will declare you as an Omega under protection, and you will carry his courtship mark.”

Rob reared back. “I thought you said this wasn’t a claiming?”

“They’re similar, but not the same. A mating claim mark is placed on the back of the neck, and is permanent, and forever alters the biology of both Alpha and Omega. A courtship claim mark is temporary. It will fade after a couple of weeks if not intentionally reapplied. It affects the biology much more subtly, mostly scent in the Omega and protective instinct in the Alpha. Those effects fade with the mark.”

“Wait. So, how does all this put Rich in need of protection?”

“Yeah. This part is why I had to know that he was damned sure he knew what he was getting into. This is also where both your past and this being temporary come into play. You need to understand that in doing this, Rich is putting himself at some very serious legal risk.”

“What?!” Rob sat up straighter. “Why? How?”

“Remember when I said you are the special circumstance here? You are an Omega who has already been harmed to the extent that an Alpha damn near copped the death penalty. That places you under the protection of some very stringent anti-injury laws, especially considering the celebrity status you both hold. If he were to court you normally, and you split later, it doesn’t matter how much you both protest that it was mutual, he would be facing a claim for abandonment, and it could be considered that you were being coerced to say otherwise.”

“I would never…!”

“No, we know you wouldn’t. But it doesn’t have to be you. Any asshole off the street with a beef against Rich could file the claim, and that would be that. Essentially legal murder. Because, to harm an Omega already under the protection of these specific laws results in a single penalty: Death.”

“But why? Why would he put himself at risk like that for me of all people?”

“Sweetie, that’s not my story to tell. Rob, what’s wrong?”

Rob threw himself on the bed, one arm over his eyes. “And I get no say in any of this?”

“Actually, you do.” He uncovered his eyes to look at Bri. “The whole reason this process is still legally recognized under modern Omega protection law is because it’s been changed to require the Omega’s consent at every single step in the process. He can’t even formally ask your Alpha guardian’s permission to BEGIN his petition without your consent.”

“So where do you, Matt, and Misha come into this?”

“Right. In the immediate right now? As a Beta, I have no skin in this game. Rich has done everything he can informally at this point. By leaving you with me, instead of you being alone with him while I gather folks up, he ensures that there can be no claim that you were coerced into giving your consent.

“Matt was brought up in a full Alpha/Omega household. He knows the rights of an Omega. He is there if you want to fact check, basically, to be sure you fully understand what you are consenting to. You were raised without the education an Alpha parent would have offered you. So it’s another layer of protection for Rich against accusations of coercion. All of it is really to keep your guardian honest.”

“You keep mentioning my Alpha, my guardian. What is that about?”

Bri pulled herself up to sit back against the headboard. “It’s a bit of a throwback to the original process, but again, modified to protect the Omega’s modern rights. He certifies your consent, assesses Rich’s intentions, ensures that you both understand and agree to the specifics, in this case the temporary nature of this arrangement, and formally pass you into Rich’s courtship should you ultimately agree with it.” She paused. “You’re still confused.”

“Yeah, just a bit.” Rob moved to join her against the headboard. “In simpler terms?”

Bri glanced at her watch. “The guys should be back any moment, so I’ll have to bare bones this last part for you. Normally, Rich would petition your family Alpha, your father in your case. Since that isn’t possible, you’re consenting to allow Misha to act in his stead. The rest is pretty self-explanatory as we go. Capish?”

“About as much as I’m going to.”

They both turned as they heard the door open, allowing Rich, Matt, and Misha to file into the room.

Misha reared back immediately. “Christ, Rich, you weren’t kidding. No way it’s safe to let him jump into a situation as uncontrolled as a convention audience, not smelling like that. We’ll have every unmated Alpha in the place storming the stage.”

“Yeah, no joke.” They all turned to Matt, standing by the door with the back of his hand pressed to his nose. “Sorry if I don’t come say hi, Robbie, but you reek right now. But welcome to the family.”

“Thanks, I think?”

“Alright guys.” Misha called everyone to attention. “While the powers that be would probably understand why, let’s get this done before we’re any later than we already are.”

He turned to Rob. “Do you understand what is happening here?”

“I think so. Bri was pretty thorough.”

Misha nodded. “If at any point you need clarification, you have the right to halt these proceedings to consult with Matt. Nobody will think any less of you for doing so. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

“Ok. Now. In light of the passing of your family Alpha, and in the absence of any other Alpha with legitimate claim of guardianship over you, Rich has asked me to stand in your father’s stead. Do you consent to this?”

“Yes.”

“Do you consent to allow Brianna and Matt to stand witness to these proceedings?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Rich?” Misha moved to face him. “Alpha, state your intentions here.”

“I petition to offer courtship and my protection to the Omega Rob Benedict, currently under the protection and guardianship of the Alpha Misha Collins.”

“Omega, do you consent to this Alpha’s petition? You are not agreeing to the courtship itself, only to allowing the petition to move forward.”

Rob hesitated, sending a questioning look at Matt. Matt gave a silent nod, letting him know it was ok. Rob turned back to Misha.

“I consent.”

“Ok. Alpha, what are your intentions in offering courtship to this Omega?”

“I offer courtship in order to bring this Omega under my protection as his Alpha for the duration of this convention and until such time as my claim mark fades from his body. I intend this courtship to be in legal name only, and I do not intend for this to be a sexual relationship beyond placement of my courtship claim mark.”

“Wait, what? Matt?!”

Matt brought his hands up in front of him to try to calm Rob’s fears. “It’s ok. It’s intimate, yes. But unlike a mating mark, there’s no actual sexual contact. For the sake of transparency though, Rich is legally required to disclose that intimacy factor.”

Rob visibly relaxed. “Right. Ok. That makes sense.” He turned to Misha. “It’s alright, I’m good. We can continue.”

Misha nodded his acknowledgement. “Ok, Omega. Do you understand the proposal put forth by this Alpha?”

“I do.”

“And do you understand and consent to the temporary nature of this arrangement?”

“I do.”

“Do you accept and consent to the courtship and protection being offered?”

“I do.”

“Good. Then as the Alpha currently charged with this Omega’s protection and guardianship, I formally release my legal claim to the Omega Rob Benedict, and concede all rights and privileges to courtship and protecting responsibilities to the Alpha Richard Speight Jr. Omega, if you consent to this, please take a place at your Alpha’s side.” Rob crossed the room to stand next to Rich.

“Alright guys. This is the part where you go make our excuses and stall just a little longer while Rob and I wrap things up here. Besides, everybody downstairs is probably dying to know what’s going on.”

Rob grabbed Rich’s arm to get his attention. “Wait, they aren’t going to stay?”

Rich sighed. “Robbie, you are completely within your rights to ask one or more of them to stay. But placement of a claim mark of any kind is an incredibly intimate act. I wasn’t exaggerating that. I don’t think you want an audience for this.”

“Oh, um, yeah. Got it. I guess we’ll see you guys in a bit.”

Misha looked a bit unsure. “Alpha, consent!” He barked the reminder at Rich.

“I was getting there, Mish.” He crossed his arms and turned back to Rob. “Omega, I reiterate that none of this happens without your continued consent. That consent has been questioned. Therefore, I have to ask. Do you consent to let these people leave and remain here with me alone to proceed with this claiming?”

“No sex?”

“No sex.”

“Then I consent.”

Rich nodded to the others. “We’ll see you down there.”

Rob watched them filter out, then turned to Rich. “Ok, so how does this work?”

He considered for a moment. “Would you be ok with taking your shirt off? It’s fine if you say no, but this will take stronger the more skin to skin contact we can manage.”

“Yeah, ok.”

Rich stripped his shirt off and dropped it to the floor as Rob did the same, then stepped into his space.

“Speaking of skin to skin contact, we’re going to need to get extremely close for this part. May I?”

At Rob’s nod, Rich stepped around behind him and placed his hands on Rob’s hips to pull him back against himself. He groaned. Damn, Rob felt good. He wrapped one arm around Rob’s waist, and wrapped the other under one arm and up across Rob’s chest to grab the opposite shoulder and held him tightly. Rich nuzzled into the crook of Rob’s neck and inhaled.

Oh, shit, he was in trouble. He wanted so much more than this farce of a courtship. But that’s not what Robbie consented to, and he needed to respect that. He moaned and started to rut into Rob’s ass.

“Richie?”

Rob’s questioning tone brought Rich back to himself. “Right, right. Sorry. You just smell so damned good. When this is all over, I think that you and I need to have a serious talk.”

“Yeah, sure. Right now, we need to get going.”

“Yep.” He ran the tip of his tongue along the cord of muscle where he would place his mark, and felt Rob shiver. Interesting. But that was for later. “Sorry man, this is gonna hurt.” He placed his teeth where his tongue had been, and bit down.

“What do you mean it’s going to… Oh fuck, Rich!”

Rich’s grasp was the only thing that kept Rob on his feet as Rich flexed his jaw one more time, breaking skin before letting go. He lapped at the beads of blood that welled up, until Rob let out a moan.

“Oh Rich. Oh shit. What was that? That was… Oh, God. Ok.” He moaned again as the flush of the claim seeped through him.

Rich buried his head in the crook of Rob’s neck again. “Fuck, Robbie. You gotta stop that. I’m already having enough trouble not throwing you down on that bed over there and keeping us there for the rest of the day. Have some mercy on me, please.”

“Yeah, sorry. It just felt so damn good.”

“I know, I felt it too. But we need to get dressed and get downstairs before they call in the calvary. Got your legs under you?”

Rob nodded, and Rich let him go. He watched his new Omega cross the room to retrieve his shirt.

“Wait.”

Rich scooped his own shirt up off the floor and held it out to Rob. “Any chance I can talk you into wearing mine instead? I’m going to have a hard enough time the next couple of days. Misha formally conceded you to me, so I’ll be fine with him. But it’s going to be incredibly difficult for me to allow Stephen around you right now, and I’ll probably have issues with Jensen and Jared when they get here tomorrow evening. Add in all the photo ops you have scheduled, and your meet and greets that I can’t attend… I’m hoping that the more of my scent that I can get on you, at least until our biologies catch up, the easier it will be. Plus you won’t have to deal with me being quite as much of a jerk.”

Rob laughed. “Yeah, I can do that. Pass it here.” Rich tossed it over, and Rob pulled it over his head as rich rummaged through his bags for a spare.

Shirts on and everything tucked in, they headed for the door.

“Rich?”

He turned around to see Rob shyly holding a hand out to him. He smiled, taking Rob’s hand and leading him out the door and down to the convention.


	3. 3

“There they are!”

Rob and Rich were barely into the greenroom before their friends saw them. Briana walked over. “Well, let’s see it then!”

Rich looked over at Rob, and Rob shrugged. “I guess if you really want to.” He turned around and let Rich pull his collar to the side.

Rich cringed at how bruised and angry his mark looked. He ran a finger over it, and had to catch Rob as he hissed and his legs buckled beneath him.

“Christ, Rich! Did you mark him or put him through a meat grinder?” growled Stephen as the band filed in and caught sight as well.

His tone put Rich on edge, and Rich moved to put himself between his Omega and the drummer. Misha was quick to intercept him before he could advance to defend his claim, holding one hand up to stop Rich and pushing Stephen back with the other until his back was against the wall.

“Rich, stop! You know there is no threat here.” He gestured to where Rob was now sitting on the couch, Kim and Bri fussing over his bite. “Go back to your Omega, help the girls treat that wound. And get over yourself before you get on stage.”

He turned to Stephen. “Are you insane? Aggression towards another Alpha when his claim on Rob is less than an hour old, and you unmated?” He paused. “I realize that you have informally kept an eye on Rob for a lot of years, especially since his attack. And I know that all that has given you a strong protective instinct where he is concerned. That’s valid, and an extra set of eyes this weekend is good. But you need to calm down. I told you, Rich insisted on going old school with this. I oversaw everything but the actual claiming, and I can promise you, it’s legitimate.”

He called Stephen’s attention to where Rich was shooing the girls’ hands back and tending Rob himself. “He is safely under Rich’s care, including legally. Nobody else can attempt a claim right now. Besides, you know that those two are probably the only ones who haven’t figured out yet how they feel about each other. You should have seen how Rich was looking at him earlier, I suspect we will have a full mating on our hands before the year is out. Rich will never let anything happen to him. Rob. Is. Safe.”

He lowered his hand from Stephen’s chest as he calmed. “Now, for the sake of Rich’s instincts, and the sake of all our nerves this weekend, I’m asking you, Alpha to Alpha. I conceded claim during the proceedings upstairs. I think it would go a long way for you to voluntarily go over there and offer him your own concession.”

Stephen nodded. “Yeah, probably. Thanks, Mish.” Misha stepped out of the way to let him push off the wall.

“Approach carefully. His hackles are still going to be up.”

Stephen crossed the room cautiously. He stopped as he got near the couch and could hear Rich’s low growls.

Rob rolled his eyes and admonished Rich. “Alpha! Rich. Dude, chill out. It’s just Stephen. Let him talk.” He gestured his bandmate over. “C’mon. I’ll make sure this overprotective brute behaves.”

Stephen closed the distance, lowering himself to his knees in front of the pair. Rich growled again, earning himself a backhand to the chest from Rob. He scowled at him, then turned to Stephen. “What do you want, Alpha?”

Stephen sighed. “Rich. You know that I have been watching out for Rob for a very long time. And ever since his attack, I have considered myself his protector, whether he liked it or not. But, Rich, he is my brother, not a potential mate. I need you to know that I am no threat to your claim.”

He turned his head to expose his throat. “Alpha, I concede any claim I may have held towards your Omega and all responsibility for him to you. I only ask that you allow me to help you keep my friend safe this weekend, and into the future.”

Rich considered the Alpha in front of him. He looked down at Rob, and Rob nodded. He turned back to Stephen, then reached over and tapped the side of Stephen’s neck, symbolically accepting his concession. “Thanks, man, I appreciate it. And the more folks we have looking out for him, the better.”

“Great!” Rob said sarcastically. “Now, if you all are done posturing, can we get out there? We’ve already held this show up by an hour.”

“Yeah, just one more sec.” Rich secured one last piece of tape to the bandage on Rob’s shoulder. “There we go. Let’s get this show on the road.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooooo many thanks to Wilde_Abandon for spending a few hours the other day helping me tear this story apart and figure out where it could go. This chapter is 100x times better than the original draft thanks to her.

Rob took a deep breath and released it slowly, trying to ease the nerves he felt as he and Rich waited behind the curtain. He fidgeted with the collar of his shirt, making sure it hid the bandage covering the mark on his neck. Looking around for something to distract himself, he found himself checking out his friend. His eyes drifted across that mouth that had scored that mark into his skin, his strong shoulders, those arms that always made him feel so safe, the slight bulge at the front of his pants…

_Wonder what it would feel like to ride that cock? I bet it would feel amazing in my…_

Rob shook his head. That had to be the claim talking. He didn't deny he found Rich attractive, he always had, but… No. It didn't matter how he felt, either before or after. Rich had made it perfectly clear that the claim was temporary and in name only. He only wanted to protect him like a good friend should. And Rob wasn't willing to risk their friendship and try to take it any further than that. There was no point. Rich simply wasn't interested, period.

_But there's always the chance…_

Rob was pulled from his thoughts at the sound of the band striking up his intro. He climbed the stairs to head to the stage, missing the way Rich was checking him out from behind.

Rich let out the breath he was holding as Rob disappeared through the curtain. _Fuck that was close._ The last several years had been hard as it was, struggling to hide his feelings for his friend to avoid losing him. Now, with the claim, he was barely able to keep himself off Rob at all, every instinct in him screaming to make the Omega his in every way possible. 

In that moment before Rob took the stage, Rich was terrified that he’d noticed the hard on he’d been sporting all morning despite his best efforts. He was damned aware that the ONLY thing Rob had consented to in all this was Rich’s protection Alpha to Omega; Rob had made that perfectly clear with his behavior during the ceremony earlier and his reactions to even the idea of anything remotely sexual happening with Rich. And he knew that if he made any advances on Rob now, he risked Rob thinking he was only interested because of the claim, and even potentially scaring him off entirely. There was nothing he could do right now except pine, and wait.

Rob stumbled slightly as he too the stage, managing to cover it up with a joke about watching that last step before launching into his opening speech. A couple of Alphas in the front row suddenly started scenting the air, making his pulse race. Ultimately, they shrugged it off to return to their conversation, and he was able to relax into his performance.

Until the first feverish chill hit. He only prayed that the moan he let out didn’t transmit into the mic in his hand. Shaking it off best he could, he kept going. The next one hit mid-sentence, and he stumbled. This time there was no hiding it as he moaned directly into the mic. His panic rose as the sound aroused the interest of one of the Alphas from earlier, and he watched in horror as she locked eyes with him and started to stand.

Rich felt a punch to the gut as Rob’s moan rang out over the sound system. Suddenly he picked up on the acrid scent of Rob’s fear. His hackles rose and he charged onto the stage to see one of the audience approaching the front as Rob slowly backed away in fear. Where the hell were Rob’s handlers?

_Fuck._

Rich crossed the stage as fast as he could, and stepped in front of Rob to stare down the Alpha. He growled, and threw as much MINE and BACK OFF into the air as he could. The other Alpha pulled up short in surprise as she registered what was going on, baring her throat as she stepped back.

Rich swore as the exchange triggered a smattering of chatter in the audience. So much for keeping THAT on the down low. On the upside, he supposed, at least now it was clear to everyone that Rob was off limits, and hopefully that would mitigate a lot of the issue for the weekend. If Rob lasted that long… 

Rob’s whispered “Alpha” had him turning around. He took in his clammy, pale appearance, and knew he had to get him off the stage.

He crossed over to Rob carefully, mindful of the mild panic he could still read in his eyes. Rich stood as close to him as he could, flooding the space with scents of calming and affection. Trying desperately to take the edge off Rob’s heat as much as he could while in front of an audience. He laid a hand on Rob’s uninjured shoulder and gently squeezed, hoping the touch would help clear Rob’s head for a moment.

“Rich… my heat… So fast… I can’t…”

Rich cupped Rob’s face with his free hand, and his heart skipped a beat as his Omega instinctively nuzzled into his palm, chasing his Alpha’s scent. “Yeah baby, I know.” _Baby? Oh, he was so fucked._ “C’mon, let’s get you out of here.” He stopped long enough to whisper to Billy to take over introducing the first guest and led Rob off the stage, snagging Rich’s jacket as they went and throwing it across Rob’s shoulders.

In the chaos of getting Rob out of there, neither of them registered the Alpha in the far back corner of the room. A dark scowl crossed his face as their combined scents infiltrated his senses. _Well, that complicates things a bit._ Still, nothing was going to stop him from ensuring that that whore of an Omega was returned to his rightful owner and duly punished. He hadn’t gone through the trouble of breaking out of custody for nothing. He pushed off the wall with a quiet growl and stalked out of the room.


End file.
